The 2002 Monterey Jazz FestivalOr How To See 60 Groups In 30 Hours

The Monterey Jazz Festival is one of the top annual jazz festivals held in
the United States, possibly the most significant one. On five stages (a
large outdoor arena, a smaller garden stage and three indoor nightclubs), all
located at the Monterey Fairgrounds, a remarkable amount of high-quality
music takes place within a 2 1/2 day period, generally the third weekend of
September. Under the direction of Tim Jackson, this festival (unlike so many
others) ignores pop/jazz and so-called smooth jazz in favor of showcasing
adventurous music, veteran greats and a wide variety of major names and top
local talent from the San Francisco Bay area. Going to the Monterey Jazz
Festival lets one see a cross section of the very best jazz music around
today.

So much music takes place that most fans have to choose between seeing one
group or another. For instance, at 8:30 p.m. on Saturday this year, Charlie
Haden's American Dreams, Michael Wolff's Impure Thoughts, William Breuker's
Kollektief, percussionist Orestes Villato and the Taylor Eigsti Trio were all
performing at the same time. Most spectators stick to one or two venues,
enjoying a show in its entirety. I, however, have a different strategy,
choosing to see every single group.

The reasons are threefold: 1) Several years ago when a fifth stage was added,
Tim Jackson said that it was now finally impossible to see every act. It is
a fun game to prove him wrong each year. 2) Quite often the most rewarding
music and the biggest surprises come from the lesser-known groups rather than
the headliners. 3) It is virtually impossible to see everyone, which is a
perfect reason tood that is eaten during the prime hours are items that can
be held with one hand and consumed while walking fast. It is important to
travel light, wear strong tennis shoes, and master the art of dodging
pedestrians while moving rapidly from one side of the fairgrounds to the
other. It is also necessary to know when the best time is to leave a stage
and run to the next one. The key is to see a major high point, usually an
uptempo tune filled with passion and excitement, and then depart quickly as
the bandleader is announcing the next song (which will invariably be a
ballad). If one gets the timing right, it is easy to get delirious seeing
one exciting performance after another. However if you get stalled or the
stars are not lined up properly, one might get stuck seeing three straight
drum solos.

The goal is to see a little bit of every performer, at least a song or two
and sometimes as much as a half-hour although 20 minutes is more the norm.
Some artists perform several times over the weekend but it is cheating to
only see them once; they have to be caught at every single venue in which
they appear. It is permissible to skip the high school and college bands
that are prevalent on Sunday afternoon, but not the panel discussions and
live interviews. All in all, I was able to see all 60 events that took place
this year during a 54-hour period (between 6:30 p.m. Friday night and 12:30
a.m. Monday morning). Deducting the time when the festival was closed, all
of the music really took place in 30 hours, so it comes out to two events an
hour. A dozen groups perform during Friday and Saturday night between 8 p.m.
so things get very hectic. If this review sounds a bit breathless, it is
quite excusable. Here is what I was lucky enough to see, in chronological
order:

It all began on Friday night at 6:30 p.m. with pianist Michael Bluestein's
trio. Rather than deal with standards written by dead composers, Bluestein,
bassist Jon Evans and drummer Jason Lewis played jazz interpretations of
songs by washed-up rock groups. This interesting but odd set included such
songs as Cat Stevens' "Wild World,""Led Zeppelin's "Ten Years Gone"and Steely
Dan's "Asia." One waited with anticipation for a medley of Chad & Jeremy
songs but fortunately that did not happen. The music was often lightly funky
and fine in small doses but soon I wandered away to see a photo exhibit from
Dave Brubeck's collection including shots of his prior appearances at
Monterey. . . .

The Heath Brothers appeared in different settings throughout the weekend.
Their first set had tenor-saxophonist Jimmy, bassist Percy and drummer Albert
"Tootie"Heath plus pianist Jeb Patton performing joyful hard bop including
"Some Sounds For Some Ears"and a cooking uptempo version of "On the Trail."
Like James Moody, Jimmy Heath still plays with a great deal of energy and
seems ageless. . . .Paula West is a fine San Francisco-based vocalist who has a
warm voice and sings in a classic style with great respect for the lyrics of
songs she interprets. With fine support from tenor-saxophonist Noel Jewkes
and a trio with pianist Bruce Barth, West sang some obscurities and Jobim's
"The Waters Of March.". . . .

Along with the Heath Brothers, Dave Brubeck was a constant presence th
roughout this year's festival. Performing with his sons (Chris on electric
bass and trombone, drummer Dan and cellist Matthew) in a very crowded
nightclub (this was a difficult venue to get in), the 81-year old Brubeck
played with undiminished energy, creativity and enthusiasm, tearing into "St.
Louis Blues" with some heated stride piano. . . .Roy Hargrove's RH Factor
surprised some of his longtime fans for the hard bop trumpeter performed funk
with an ensemble including two saxophonists, guitar, organ, keyboards, bass
and two drummers plus singer Stephanie McKay. On some songs Hargrove used an
electronic attachment on his horn, getting an electric wa-wa sound that was a
little reminiscent of Miles Davis in the 1970s and making his trumpet sound
like a synthesizer. Although one missed his trademark sound, Hargrove played
some fiery solos and the mix of jazz with funk largely succeeded. . . .

Roberta Gambarini, a very impressive singer who I had first heard at the
previous year's festival, was back and swinging such standards as "This Can't
Be Love," Just Squeeze Me"(during which she sounded a lot like Ella), Dave
Brubeck's "Summer Song"and her memorable rendition of "On The Sunny Side Of
The Street." The latter has her singing (from the 1957 recording) the solos
of Sonny Stitt, Dizzy Gillespie and Sonny Rollins. Hopefully she will record
this gem someday. . . .Drummer Sylvia Cuenca led a quartet comprised of the
hugely underrated trumpeter Eddie Henderson, tenor-saxophonist Greg Tardy and
organist Kyle Koehler. This is a world class group that played advanced hard
bop and soul jazz. . . .

Clarinetist Don Byron was on the main stage at the time, performing a
specially commisioned suite (titled "Red") in a group with eight horns, a
rhythm section, percussionists and singers Abdoulaye Diabate and MIlton
Cardona. Some of the music sounded a bit like that of Charles Mingus with
the colorful horns often purposely clashing while playing overlapping parts.
The African singer Diabate began to dominate at one point so it was time to
run again. . . .Pianist Anthony Wonsey celebrated his birthday by performing at
Monterey in a trio with bassist Brandon Owens and drummer Donald Edwards,
getting a standing ovation for his exploration of "Invitation.". . . .A quartet
co-led by altoist Steve Slagle and the spacey-sounding guitarist Dave Stryker
played some avant-funk with Slagle getting into an Eddie Harris groove on
"Near New York" and performed some high-quality post-bop music. . . .Singer Lizz
Wright reminded me of Dianne Reeves on "Afro Blue" and impressed many
listeners fortunate enough to catch the second half of her set (her long
tones were haunting). . . .

However by then I was watching tenor-saxophonist Joshua Redman in a trio with
keyboardist-organist Sam Yahel and drummer Brian Blade. Fiery solos by each
of the players on "Still Pushing That Rock" (a tune based on a repetitive
riff) and a spectacular roaring tenor solo over the closing vamp which ended
on a screaming high note gained a standing ovation. "Molten Soul" found
Redman playing unaccompanied a la Eddie Harris, almost as if he had heard
Stryker's set, which was impossible. At nearly the same time, Roy Hargrove
had a second set with his funk group, and coincidentally played Eddie Harris'
"Listen Here!". . . .

So much for Friday night. Saturday afternoons are traditionally given over to
the blues, at least at two of the venues. A band led by guitarist Steve
Freund (who records for Delmark) played some conventional but spirited blues
including "Up In the Playhouse" and "I'll Be A Mule" before backing Big Time
Sarah, who shook her overweight frame, urged the audience on and belted out
"Fever.". . . .At the same time Lady Bianca was singing in a similar style
although also playing keyboards. Best was when she shifted to an old-time
blues style for "Better Call Your Doctor Today," a humorous 1920s-type
duet/dialogue with a male singer. . . .A student jazz group from Australia (The
Contemporary Music Studies Ensemble) was most notable for featuring eight
flute players but the soloists were often painful to hear. One of their
singers performed "Accentuate The Positive," which was probably good advice
for listening to this band. . . .

Dan Ouellette conducted a public Blindfold Test for Down Beat, with the Heath
Brothers and it was quite hilarious hearing Jimmy, Percy and especially
Tootie criticizing everything that was played. After talking about how much
they disliked a particular record, it was revealed that it was by John Lewis.
After a moment of embarrassment at not being able to identify him, they
continued telling the audience how much they hated the music. . . .

Lavay Smith and her Red Hot Skillet Lickers performed their brand of circa
1944 swing including heated versions of "Symphony In Sid" and "Jet
Propulsion." The four horn players were excellent (particularly trumpeter
Allen Smith) even if Howard Wiley's tenor solos sometimes sounded too modern.
Lavay Smith swung her features in her Dinah Washington-inspired style and
pianist Chris Siebert stood out on some boogie-woogie. . . .

The hit of the afternoon for me was blues singer-pianist Marcia Ball who
played a set more jazz-oriented than expected, with fine tenor playing from
Brad Andrew and good solos from guitarist Pat Boyack. Ball's piano playing
is exciting (particularly on uptempo blues), she was expressive in her vocal
on the blues ballad "Louisiana, They're Trying To Wash Us Away" and she sang
about food in the style of Louis Jordan. . . .Etta James excelled as usual on
her single-entendre blues (one never doubts the meanings to her songs),
tearing into "I'd Rather Be A Blind Girl" and sounding quite emotional on "At
Last.". . . .

The avant-garde jazz group E.S.P. was quite a change as violinist India Cooke
played a solo that built up to a frenzy. She interacted well with bassist
Kimara, percussionist Kele Nitoto and singer Toni Pope. India Cooke deserves
to be much better known. . . .Big Time Sarah performed a second set on a smaller
stage that was similar to her well-received main stage performance including
"The Thrill Is Gone"and "Hoochie Coochie Woman.". . . .The Air Force Band Of The
Golden West sounded surprisingly modern for a military jazz orchestra,
featuring electronics (including an electrified trombone solo), strong
musicianship, advanced solos and an interesting reworking of "Brazil.". . . .

Dave Brubeck talked at great length to journalist Herb Wong about his musical
life and his hopes for the future. At one point he said "This year I'm
recording everything I've ever written that has not been recorded. Maybe 10
or 20 years from now it will be released." His voice was a bit frail but
Brubeck's mind is as sharp as ever. . . .

The Berklee-Monterey Quartet featured some Coltranish playing by a
tenor-saxophonist (probably Walter Smith) that displayed a lot of future
potential. . . .Marcia Ball's second performance was the equal of the first,
closing the blues portion of the festival with "I Don't Want No Man To Tell
Me What To Do" and "Going Down To New Orleans.". . . .

There was no live music from 7 to 8 p.m. but, to avoid withdrawal, I sat in
the main theatre and watched a film of the 1964 Charles Mingus Sextet with
Eric Dolphy playing miraculous music. . . .Saturday night got underway with a
Percussion Discussion moderated by Chuy Varela of KCSM-FM featuring five top
percussionists (including John Santos) who would be showcased in one of the
indoor nightclubs that night; the place was surprisingly packed. . . .Cuarteto
Caribe, an Afro-Cuban quartet with Santos on congas and pianist Elio
Villafranca, started the music with plenty of fire at that venue. . . .Pianist
Michael Wolff's Impure Thoughts is an unusual sextet that includes the
high-powered altoist Sonny Fortune, bassist John B. Williams and Badal Roy on
tabla. The music could be called world fusion, with Fortune keeping the
proceedings grounded in jazz. . . .

On the main stage: bassist Charlie Haden's American Dreams is a quartet with
the great tenor Michael Brecker, pianist Kenny Barron and drummer Rodney
Green, augmented by the Monterey Jazz Festival Chamber Orchestra conducted by
Alan Broadbent. The string ensemble was unfortunately only utilized on the
ballads but Brecker and Barron in particularly played quite beautifully and
some of the quartet pieces hinted strongly at Sonny Rollins and Ornette
Coleman. . . .

I felt quite guilty leaving Haden's performance and rushing past a screaming
Sonny Fortune alto solo but I could not miss Willem Breuker's Kollektief.
The zany avant-garde Dutch institution is a seven-horn tentet that plays
complex music that sometimes sounds like it has been taken from a crazy film.
While some of the humor was abstract, other moments were more accessible as
when Breuker led his group and some audience members through a singalong over
Henk de Jonge's freeform piano solo. . . .

The Heath Brothers swung such numbers as "Winter Sleeves" (which Jimmy Heath
explained was renamed from "Autumn Leaves" so he could get the royalties) and
"A Sassy Samba." Percy Heath looked so happy playing with his younger
brothers. . . .The percussion show continued with Ara Meji, a group led by Mi
chael Spiro and featuring four percussionists, trombonist Jeff Cressman and
flutist John Callaway performing stirring Afro-Cuban jazz. . . .

Rene Marie, a singer who has improved a bit since the last time I saw her,
swung "'Deed I Do,""Surrey With The Fringe On Top" and a surprisingly free
version of "Nature Boy.". . . .

Mingus Amungus is a particularly intriguing group comprised of three horns, a
four-piece rhythm section, two dancers and a pair of rappers. Fortunately I
missed the closing rap section but did see the two exotic dancers (Elizabeth
and Caroline Lund) who change costumes frequently, and fine solos on Mingus
tunes and originals by trumpeter Gavin DiStasi, trombonist Marty Wehner and
tenor-saxophonist Joshi Marshall. . . .It seemed only fitting that I left Mingus
Amungus to see the Mingus Big Band playing a typically rambunctious and
exciting set on the main stage. Sue Mingus introduced the highly-rated
ensemble which performed such Mingus songs as "Love's Fury,""Sweet Sucker
Dance," "Tonight At Noon," "Boogie Stop Shuffle" (on which Frank Lacy sang
the theme from "Spiderman"!) and "Meditations On Integration." Among the many
soloists were trombonist Conrad Herwig, tenor-saxophonist Abraham Burton and
baritonist Ronnie Cuber (featured on "Love's Fury"). . . .

Pianist Taylor Eigsti was quite impressive with his trio, taking apart bebop
tunes and utilizing speedy octaves that were worthy of Bennie Green. . . .John
Santos and his nine-piece group Machete were heard Latinizing "Salt Peanuts"
including liberally quoting Charlie Parker's solo in a colorful
arrangement. . . .Don Byron performed again, this time with his group "Music For
Six Musicians," a sextet with trumpeter James Zollar and pianist Edsel Gomez.
Zollar showed that he could really emulate late-period Cootie Williams on
"Caravan," and the band played all types of spirited originals. . . .

As if that were not enough for one day, I went to the late-night jam session
at a local Hyatt Hotel. Roberta Gambarini appeared and reprised her earlier
performance (with Duke Ellington's former bassist Jimmy Woode helping out)
before Percy Heath played "Out Of Nowhere" and "Bags' Groove" in a trio with
pianist Eric Gunisson.

Sunday afternoon is usually the slowest part of the Monterey Jazz Festival.
High school and college bands dominate two venues while the others only have
music part of the time although there are several interesting discussions.
One found Randy Weston and writer Willard Jenkins talking about the legacy of
poet Langston Hughes and his relationship with jazz. . . .

Bill Berry directed the Monterey Jazz Festival High School All-Star Big Band
through some Duke Ellington pieces (including a not-so-hot version of
"Diminuendo And Crescendo In Blueî) but there was a nice solo from young
trumpeter Anja Parks. Jimmy and Percy Heath joined the band for "Big P" and
"The Voice Of The Saxophone.". . . .The Clifford Brown/Stan Getz Followers
(sponsored by the International Association of Jazz Education) featured a
young quintet that included pianist Gerald Clayton playing light bop. . . .

An interesting panel on Charles Mingus and his experiences at Monterey
included Sue Mingus, writers Al Young, Phillip Ellwood and Bill Minor, and
musicians Boris Kaslov, Miles Perkins (leader of Mingus Amungus) and Earl
McIntryre. . . .Ramsey Lewis' trio performed a straightahead set that was
highlighted by a remarkable gospel medley that included "Amazing Grace,"
"Just A Closer Walk With Thee," "Sometimes I Feel Like A Motherless Child"
and a rousing closer that inspired the stadium crowd to stand up and
cheer. . . .Nancy Wilson did her best during the following set (her pianist Llew
Matthews is also excellent) but it was anti-climatic in comparison even
though she wisely emphasized the songs from her classic album with Cannonball
Adderley. . . .

Guitarist Carlos Oliveira performed some World Music jazz in a quintet with
Harvey Wainapel on woodwinds (including clarinet), featuring mostly Brazilian
and South American melodies and rhythms. . . .The Brubeck Institute Jazz Quintet
is a fine group of younger players with tenor-saxophonist Tommy Morimoto
sounding a bit like Hank Mobley. Pianist Fabian Almazon took solo honors
until their musical director bassist Christian McBride sat in on
"Confirmation. . . .

Next to the medley by Ramsey Lewis, the highpoint of the afternoon was
provided by a panel discussion called "My Life As A Heath Brother." Producer
Orrin Keepnews asked an opening question and then Jimmy, Percy and Tootie
Heath told one hilarious family story after another. It was quite funny to
see Jimmy and Percy treating Tootie (who is only 67) as if he were a kid, and
making fun of his antics from the 1940s. . . .The Berklee/Monterey Quartet's
second performance (highlighted by a slow and warm version of "I've Grown
Accustomed To Your Face") closed Sunday afternoon's portion of the
festival. . . .

Only 11 groups to go but there were still some special moments to experience.
Jesse Zubot (on fiddle and mandolin) and guitarist Steve Dawson co-led a
quartet influenced by country music and bluegrass that had its moments but
seemed out of place. . . .Randy Weston last performed at Monterey in 1966 so the
pianist's return set was long overdue. He led a sextet also featuring the
intense tenor of Billy Harper, altoist Talib Kibwe and trombonist Benny
Powell on a variety of originals pieces including Melba Liston's arrangement
of "African Sunrise.". . . .

One of the main benefits of seeing every group at Monterey is experiencing an
unexpected highlight. Organist Rhoda Scott has never became that famous but
she is still in prime form. She was teamed with drummer Deszon Claiborne and
the great Houston Person during a performance that gave the audience plenty
of thrills. A lowdown blues showed that Person can play the blues as
soulfully as any living tenor-saxophonist. At its conclusion, Person's
cadenza caused the capacity crowd to go a bit crazy. Rhoda Scott then
launched a joyful rendition of "Mack The Knife," one in which the key was
raised after each chorus and had her organ roaring like a big band. When the
song ended, she mouthed the words "One more time" and then restarted "Mack
The Knife," this time playing the melody very slyly with her feet on the bass
pedals, causing Person to beam and the audience to erupt. It was one of the
great moments. . . .

Don Byron had his third set of the weekend, this time playing duets with
pianist Edsel Gomez including an ambitious reworking of "Donna Lee"that
hinted at the past while looking forward. . . .It was cold outside when British
altoist Trevor Watts (doubling on soprano) played a free jazz set with
bassist Colin McKenzie and drummer Giampaolo Scatozza but the music was quite
hot and Watts improvised with such intensity that perhaps he did not notice
the sparse crowd. . . .Pianist Weber Iago's group with bassist Brian McConnell
and drummer Chazz Mewhort was a well-integrated modern mainstream trio heard
in top form on "Speak Low"and Iago's original "The Net."...

The main show of the night on the main stage was Dave Brubeck's 40th
anniversary presentation of his musical theater collaboration with his wife
"The Real Ambassadors," which was only previously performed back in 1962 at
Monterey. But first his quartet with altoist Bobby Militello, bassist
Michael Moore and drummer Randy Jones stretched out on "St. Louis Blues"
(Militello played surprisingly outside in spots and Brubeck's improvisation
ranged from very dense chords to a boogie-woogie and a nearly atonal stride)
and "Someday My Prince Will Come."...

I took a chance and practically ran across the fairgrounds, happily catching
Randy Weston playing a wonderful unaccompanied solo piano version of
"Hi-Fly"; another special moment. . . .Organist Reuben Wilson roared through a
blues in a trio with guitarist Grant Green Jr. (who is actually the original
Green's nephew) and drummer Clyde Stubblefield. . . .

Racing back to the Brubeck set, I saw him tearing into "Yesterdays" (with
guest Chris Brubeck on valve trombone) and "I Got Rhythm" with Christian
McBride. Clint Eastwood then introduced "The Real Ambassadors," revealing
that Dave and Iola Brubeck were celebrating their 60th wedding anniversary
that month. The Brubeck Quartet was joined by trumpeter-vocalist Byron
Stripling (who stood in for Louis Armstrong), singer Lizz Wright (who took
Carmen McRae's role), a vocal trio comprised of Lynn Fiddmont-Linsey, Lamont
VanHook and Fred White (subbing for Lambert, Hendricks and Ross) plus Roy
Hargrove, Chris Brubeck and Christian McBride. A big screen had photos of
Louis Armstrong (who was the star of the original production) and the most
haunting moment in this partial recreation was on one number when the vocal
trio sang a chorus and then Satch (from a recording) sang the next one as if
he were actually there! Other memorable moments included Stripling on
"Summer Song" (he imitated Armstrong at the end of his vocal) and the
jubilant "Go Satchmo." Brubeck looked so happy throughout the show (for which
Iola had written the lyrics), which concluded with the entire company playing
and singing "Take Five." As the curtains closed, Dave Brubeck could be seen
hugging each of the performers. . . .

The Monterey Jazz Festival ended with the 60th set, an encore performance
from the Mingus Big Band including rousing versions of "Haitian Fight Song,"
"Passions Of A Woman Loved," "Devil Woman" (with Frank Lacy's humorous and
passionate vocal) and the explosive "Moanin'."

There was nothing left to do at that point but go to my hotel room and
collapse. Quite a weekend!

Scott Yanow is the Los Angeles-based author of books on Swing, Bebop, Duke
Ellington, Afro-Cuban Jazz, Trumpet Kings, and others, besides being a
principal reviewer for the All Music Guides.